Many sport utilities have a rack on the roof for carrying various loads but often these racks are not strong enough to carry long loads such as a 17-foot canoe or long lumber. There is also a need to carry long items such as a ladder or canoe on top of a pickup truck while carrying other items in the pickup truck box. Many of the new pickup trucks have larger cabs and in turn a shorter pickup box for carrying loads. This present invention relates to a combination load support that solves both problems of carrying long loads on top of the roof or elongated loads that stretch out behind the pickup truck box.
Various units are available to do either one of these jobs but fail to do both roof top carrying and pickup box extending with one device. With a pickup truck it is often an advantage to carry a long item such as a ladder at the height of the cab roof so that other items and tools can be carried in the pickup truck box.
Prior racks such as Broad and Young insert into a receiver hitch and support a load extending beyond the bed of a truck. Neither will aid in supporting a load at the level of the roof. Broad has a pair of eyebolts, one on each end of the load rest. These eyebolts would work with a rope but not well with hold-down straps if the straps and their anchoring devices are too broad for the eyebolts.
Young had load holders extending vertically from each end of the horizontal support bar. They are welded and not adjustable with no means for fastening a rope or hold-down straps to secure the load. Young's load holders have a solid top which would not allow for easy tie down.
Vieira can support a load at the height of the roof but requires a separate unit to support a load extending from the bed of the truck. Vieira's two units are welded, are not adjustable, and are awkward to store.
It would be an advantage to the user if one apparatus could support loads on the roof of a pickup or a sport utility and also be adjusted to support loads extending beyond the tailgate of a pickup truck box.
This apparatus should be easy to assemble or disassemble and require only a small amount of storage space such as behind the seat of a pickup truck.